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May 27, 2012

Rest In Peace: Gil Scott-Heron (1949-2011)

This blog has shared the music of Gil Scott-Heron many times in the past. He is one of my favorite artists of all time ... and has been an influential poet and musician who many think sparked the cultural revolution known as 'hip-hop'.

Scott-Heron was born in Chicago in 1949. He spent his early years in Jackson, Tenn., attended high school in The Bronx, and spent time at Pennsylvania's Lincoln University before settling in Manhattan. His recording career began in 1970 with the album "Small Talk".

Scott-Heron continued to record through the 1970s and early '80s, before taking a lengthy hiatus. He briefly returned to the studio for 1994's "Spirits". That album featured the track "Message to the Messengers," in which Scott-Heron cautions the hip-hop generation that arose in his absence to use its new-found power responsibly.

Scott-Heron struggled publicly with substance abuse in the 2000s, and spent the early part of the decade in and out of jail on drug possession charges. He began performing again after his release in 2007, and in 2010 released a new album, "I'm New Here", to widespread critical acclaim.